Kevin J. Darken
Attorney
Kevin Darken, a Harvard educated former federal prosecutor, divides his practice at Cohen, Foster & Romine between complex civil litigation and white-collar criminal defense. He has close to twenty-three years of experience in all aspects of litigation, trial and appeals. A published authority in health care fraud and qui tam (whistleblower) actions, Kevin was selected by his peers as one of the Best Lawyers in America in white-collar criminal defense. In civil litigation, Kevin has focused on bringing False Claims Act qui tam cases for whistleblowers.
Kevin’s diverse background includes stints as a federal prosecutor, white-collar criminal defense attorney and corporate litigator with a large national law firm. An Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Middle District of Florida for six years, Kevin was the office’s Health Care Fraud Coordinator from 1994 to 1997, served on the Justice Department’s National Health Care Fraud Working Group, and headed the Hillsborough County Joint Bank Fraud Task Force. During his tenure with the government, he received the Department of Health and Human Services Inspector General’s Integrity Award for “outstanding leadership in the fight against health care fraud,” as well as awards from the FBI, DEA, ATF, and Postal Inspection Service.
Kevin joined Cohen, Foster & Romine from Trenam Kemker, where he was a partner concentrating on white-collar criminal defense. While at Trenam Kemker, Kevin successfully defended the CEO of a health care company accused of conspiring to defraud the Medicare program. This acquittal stands as the only instance in which a Tampa white-collar defense attorney has ever cleared a defendant of health care fraud charges at trial. Kevin also spent five years at a Washington, D.C.-based law firm, Crowell & Moring, representing defense contractors such as GE and United Technologies in procurement fraud investigations.
Kevin successfully kept a corporate comptroller from going to prison for embezzling $1.8 million from his employer by using an innovative diminished capacity sentencing defense based on the client’s inappropriate prescription to Paxil which caused the client’s manic behavior. The Tampa Bay Times summarized the result of the hard fought, day-long sentencing hearing this way on its cover: “ Patrick Stewart: Unhappy with raise, he stole $1.8 million from Jabil. He avoids prison!”
Kevin has filed and litigated numerous False Claims Act qui tam lawsuits in the Middle, Southern and Northern Districts of Florida against physicians, physician practice groups, hospital chains, a national HMO company, and the largest oxygen supplier in the country. Two of Kevin’s clients shared a relator’s share award of over $1 million for their role in exposing a dermatologist who defrauded the Medicare program by performing medically unnecessary skin cancer surgeries on elderly victims. This case was profiled on CNBC’s “American Greed” series.
Kevin has successfully litigated and defeated a motion to dismiss a qui tam complaint for lack of particularity and a motion to dismiss based on the public disclosure bar. Kevin also has won a motion to dismiss counterclaims against a relator and a motion to obtain attorneys fees for successful relators.
Kevin has published extensively in his area of authority, recently completing the eleventh edition of his book, Defending and Preventing Health Care Fraud Cases: An Attorney’s Guide. He has also written articles for the Florida Bar Journal, the Florida Bar Health Law Section Newsletter, the Florida Bar Employment Law Section Newsletter, the ABA’s Criminal Justice magazine, the Hillsborough County Bar Association’s Lawyer magazine, and Corporate Counsel Quarterly, and is a frequent speaker on health care fraud. Kevin has even testified as an expert witness in health care fraud law at a trial in Michigan.
Kevin is a district chairman for the Gulf Ridge Council of the Boy Scouts of America and a member of the Gulf Ridge Council’s Executive Board. He served for six years as an Assistant Scoutmaster.
IN THE NEWS
Education
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Harvard Law School, J.D., cum laude, 1986
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Yale College, B.A., magna cum laude, 1982
Bar Admissions
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Florida, 11th Circuit Court of Appeals
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Florida, Middle District, Northern District, and Southern District, 1996
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District of Columbia, 1987 (retired)
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Massachusetts, 1986 (retired)
Honors and Activities
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AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell
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Best Lawyers in America, 2008, White Collar Criminal Defense
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Member, Taxpayers Against Fraud relator attorney network
Articles & White Papers
Selected Reported Cases
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U.S. v. Gilbert, 136 F.3d 1451 (11th Cir. 1998) (reversing bankruptcy fraud conviction on statute of limitations grounds)
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United States v. Bracciale, 374 F.3d 996 (11th Cir. 2004) (reversing fraud sentence based on improper loss calculation)
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United States v. ex rel. Ben Bane v. Breathe Easy Pulmonary Services, Inc., 2008 WL 4534128 (M.D. Fla. 2008) (denying defendants’ motion to dismiss qui tam complaint based on public disclosure bar)
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United States ex rel. Ben Bane v, Breathe Easy Pulmonary Services, Inc., 2008 WL 4885468 (M.D. Fla. 2008) (denying defendants’ motion to dismiss qui tam complaint for lack of particularity)
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United States ex rel. Ferrara v. Rosin, 2007 WL 2412848 (M.D. Fla. 2007) (dismissing counterclaims against qui tam relator)
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United States ex rel. Ferrara v. Rosin, 2009 WL 580321 (M.D. Fla. 2009) (awarding attorneys fees to successful relators)
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